NOW interns unpack the week

Much of the public and media agrees that Wednesday night’s presidential debate was a victory for the Romney campaign, with President Obama surprisingly putting forth a lackluster performance. While Governor Romney came across as crisp and effective, his talking points demonstrated a frequent inability to put forth details grounded in facts. On Thursday’s show, Alex illustrated how Romney’s vaunted tax plans do not add up. The Governor was adamant that his tax plan would add nothing to the deficit, yet provided no substantive explanation for how he plans to execute and pay for the cuts. The typical Republican approach to balancing budgets is to slash discretionary spending that often disproportionately affects youth, minorities, and lower-income families. Cutting programs like Pell Grants, Medicare, and Food Stamps will likely not bolster Romney’s standing with those groups. According to Gallup’s most recent demographic poll, Romney lags significantly with the 18-29 age group (Obama +26), non-whites (Obama +63), and people making less than $36,000 (Obama +21). Team Romney’s tax approach will likely fail to sway these voters. Despite the focus on the two candidates’ performance, the real news could be Romney’s detail-free argument and plan for the nation.